Club Overview

Southern Soccer Academy is a 501-(c)(3) not-for-profit organization dedicated to providing soccer training and league play for 3-19 years-old boys and girls of all ability levels and backgrounds. The club, in its various forms, has been in existence since 1982 and has locations in and around the metro Atlanta area in Bartow, Coweta, Cobb, DeKalb, Douglas, Floyd, Fulton, and Paulding counties, as well as in Savannah and in the Brunswick, Jekyll Island, and Waycross areas in Southwest GA.

The club in its current form came about as the 2012 merger of a number of pre-existing soccer clubs in the metro Atlanta area. The club's membership now exceeds 8,000 players on 600+ teams, making it one of the largest soccer clubs in the Southeastern US.

The club combines local, low-cost, parent and volunteer-coached programs that emphasize participation and enjoyment of the sport through a no-try-out/no-cut policy with elite-level, professional-staff-coached programs dedicated to providing our players with the opportunity to participate in the highest levels of competitive youth soccer in the state of Georgia and beyond including USSF DA, US Club NPL and SCCL, and Georgia Soccer state-league play.

In addition, SSA is one of just a handful of clubs in the US to enjoy 'Football Development Partner' status with Chelsea FC of the English Premier League, universally recognized as one of the most successful clubs in the the world.

As a not-for-profit community sports organization, SSA has partnerships with multiple City and County Parks and Rec Departments across our locations to permit us access to various county and city owned-and-managed soccer parks and complexes. From time-to-time, we may also partner with churches, school boards, private schools, and indoor soccer venues to access additional field space when needed.

For more information on the club, including its guiding principles, please click on 'About' on the menu bar above, then 'The SSA Way'.
Soccer Contact:

Simon has been with SSA since 2012. Born in Swansea, Wales, Simon holds a UEFA 'Pro' License, the highest-level license issued by the governing body of soccer in Europe. Prior to moving to the US, Simon enjoyed a long playing and coaching career in the UK, including playing experience with Swansea City, Carlisle United and Preston North End. After finishing his playing career, Simon took on a variety of professional coaching roles, including coaching Barnsley FC in the English Championship League. Simon has also been a guest speaker at the NSCAA convention, Director of Coaching at the Disney Soccer Academy and a coach on the GA Olympic Development Program.

Sean has been with SSA in its various forms since 2004. Born in Liverpool, England, Sean has a 1st Class (Hons) degree in Sports Management Studies from Staffordshire University in England and an MS in Sports Administration from Georgia State University. His research work on the relationship between Anxiety and Sport Performance was published in the Journal of Anxiety and Coping in 2007 and has been cited in numerous books, articles, and research papers since. Sean possesses USSF 'B' and 'National Youth' licenses, has coached in both Academy and Select in his time at the club, and is a USSF-certified referee. Prior to joining SSA, Sean was employed in the front office of the original Atlanta Beat Women's Professional Team of the WUSA, working in the Community Relations Department where his duties involved creating and managing the club's relationships with youth soccer clubs and not-for-profit organizations throughout the state of Georgia. Sean also served as the Beat's camps and clinics coach as part of their community outreach program.